Genres – Fiction – Anthologies

Anthologies

What makes a great book of anthologies?

If you have a hard time choosing just one story to read, you might want to consider a collection of many stories, which is what you’ll find if you choose an anthology. A great anthologies book is something like a box of chocolates. You’ll get a lot of surprises, and if you aren’t wild about the particular story you’re reading, just wait for a few pages and it’ll change. Another great thing about an anthology collection is that you won’t be hopelessly lost if you read the stories out of order.

5 things to look for when choosing a book of anthologies

Pick a book with stories that match your interests. Some anthologies feature stories on a very specific topic, while others might span a variety of genres. Whether your taste runs to romances, mysteries, westerns or any other genre, there are anthologies available to cater for you.

Alternatively, take a chance and sample a new genre. If you’re a romance fan who’s curious about erotica, or a sci-fi reader interested in exploring the world of paranormal stories, an anthology can give you a taste of the way different writers work within the genre.

If you like a particular author, see if he or she has any anthologies on the market. Some of your favorite novelists probably also write short stories from time to time. An anthology by one of your favorites can give you the opportunity to read some of his or her earlier work or see a more experimental side.

Look for an anthology that will let you discover a new favorite or even several new favorite authors. Often, up-and-coming writers are published in an anthology before they release a full-length novel.

Seize the opportunity to read no matter how busy you are. If you tend to start a book only to abandon it for weeks because you’re too busy, an anthology will let you finish what you start; it’ll take much less time to finish reading a shorter story. No more putting a book aside for so long that you forget what it was about by the time you’re able to get back to it.

5 great books

The Best American Short Stories has been publishing since 1915. Well-known writers who made their debut through The Best American Short Stories include Ray Bradbury, Joyce Carol Oates and Flannery O’Connor.

Science fiction writer Isaac Asimov has also produced numerous classic anthologies in that genre, including IsaacAsimov Presents The Great SF Stories 1 from 1939. Additional volumes were produced until 1963.

During the mid-20th century, several magazines also published hardback fiction anthologies, including The New Yorker, which published stories featured between 1940 and 1949 in 55 Short Stories from the New Yorker.

Another publication was the Reader’s Digest magazine, which released anthologies of their condensed versions of current best-sellers several times per year starting in 1950 and continuing through until 1997.

International Short Stories was first published in 1910 and included collections of 18th through early 20th century stories by English, French and American authors.

Anthologies in the Any Subject Books library If you’re looking for an exciting anthology, why not choose one of ours? All books are available in Kindle, ePub and PDF formats.

Our anthologies

Four nail-biting tales of horror and obsession to keep you on the edge of your seat.

Sixteen tales with twists in them that you just won’t see coming. One of our bestsellers.